The World Of Harlequin
Condition: SECONDHAND
This is a secondhand book. The jacket image is a photograph of the exact copy we have in stock. This image shows the condition of this book. Further condition remarks are below.
Condition remarks:
Book: Good
Jacket: No dust jacket
Pages: Good
Condition remarks: Condition as shown in image
A masked figure in diamond-patterned costume stands at the heart of one of theatre history's most enduring mysteries — and Allardyce Nicoll's The World of Harlequin sets out to unravel it with scholarly precision and infectious enthusiasm. This authoritative study chronicles the rich, turbulent history of the Commedia dell'Arte, the improvisational Italian theatre tradition that flourished from the sixteenth century onward, tracing the evolution of its iconic stock characters — Harlequin, Columbine, Pantalone, and the Dottore — across European stages and through centuries of cultural transformation. Nicoll presents a sweeping panorama of performance, drawing on a vast archive of theatrical records, iconography, and literary sources to reconstruct a world of acrobats, lovers, and tricksters that shaped the very foundations of modern comedy. As one of the twentieth century's foremost theatre historians, Nicoll brings both rigorous academic discipline and a storyteller's flair to this landmark work, illuminating how the Commedia's anarchic spirit infiltrated ballet, opera, pantomime, and eventually cinema. His prose is lucid and authoritative, never losing sight of the human vitality that animated these performers, and his analysis remains an indispensable reference for scholars and theatre enthusiasts alike. The World of Harlequin ultimately asks a question that still resonates: what is it about this motley, mercurial figure that has captivated audiences for over four centuries — and why can we not seem to let him go?
Author: Allardyce Nicoll
Format: Paperback
Published: 1963, Cambridge University Press
Genre: Preforming Arts
Condition remarks:
Book: Good
Jacket: No dust jacket
Pages: Good
Condition remarks: Condition as shown in image
A masked figure in diamond-patterned costume stands at the heart of one of theatre history's most enduring mysteries — and Allardyce Nicoll's The World of Harlequin sets out to unravel it with scholarly precision and infectious enthusiasm. This authoritative study chronicles the rich, turbulent history of the Commedia dell'Arte, the improvisational Italian theatre tradition that flourished from the sixteenth century onward, tracing the evolution of its iconic stock characters — Harlequin, Columbine, Pantalone, and the Dottore — across European stages and through centuries of cultural transformation. Nicoll presents a sweeping panorama of performance, drawing on a vast archive of theatrical records, iconography, and literary sources to reconstruct a world of acrobats, lovers, and tricksters that shaped the very foundations of modern comedy. As one of the twentieth century's foremost theatre historians, Nicoll brings both rigorous academic discipline and a storyteller's flair to this landmark work, illuminating how the Commedia's anarchic spirit infiltrated ballet, opera, pantomime, and eventually cinema. His prose is lucid and authoritative, never losing sight of the human vitality that animated these performers, and his analysis remains an indispensable reference for scholars and theatre enthusiasts alike. The World of Harlequin ultimately asks a question that still resonates: what is it about this motley, mercurial figure that has captivated audiences for over four centuries — and why can we not seem to let him go?